Nauvoo

Last weekend we spent a little time in Nauvoo, Illinois. We loved it! We were able to meet up with my brother and his family and it made it that much more fun - especially since they had been before, so they could clue us in on the things we should do most. We even swapped babysitting so we could each do a session in the Temple! It was amazing.

This was the Nauvoo Pageant on Friday night, with a gorgeous backdrop of the Nauvoo Temple.

We crossed a bridge over the Mighty Mississippi River a few times and couldn't believe how big it is!

Nauvoo Temple and our family.

Family closer up - with some intense sunshine.

Joseph and Hyrum Smith saying goodbye to Nauvoo. These stories amaze me.

Erik took this picture and I think it is so pretty.

Fun times with our little cousin!

Touching the Mississippi where the Saints crossed on ice when they fled from Nauvoo.

We saw a LOT of this.

Ezekiel Johnson, an ancestor of ours that never joined the Church, but always defended the Prophet, Joseph Smith, and the Saints.

The Old Nauvoo Burial Grounds

In search of Ezekiel Johnson's grave. He is buried here, but the majority of the stones cannot be read any more.

We went to Carthage on our way home. My favorite part of the trip. Actually, this whole trip made the history of our Church so real for me. I have always had a testimony of it, but this solidified it.

On our way home, we stopped for dinner at this place - apparently it was on that show Man vs. Food once - where he ate the really hot hot wings. Anyway, we got some wings that were not as hot as that...

And as you can tell, it was delicious!

It was a wonderful trip, and no matter how many times I have used and over-used the words beautiful, gorgeous, amazing, etc...it won't do it justice. We enjoyed every sweat-dripping moment of it, despite the 95* temps and 85% humidity (or maybe it was more? I don't know, what I do know is that I felt like a puddle the entire time we were there).

North Carolina, here we come!